The days of anxiously awaiting the latest episode of Dallas or Dynasty may be over, but pay channels offer a new breed of can’t miss drama. The latest smash hit currently capturing the attention of U.S. viewers is The Gilded Age, Lord Jullian Fellowes’ successor to his equally engrossing Downton Abbey. Both bring to life with great relish the milieu of turn of the century high society.
Each season of The Gilded Age has become more popular than the last, and it’s because the soap opera elements we know so well are celebrated by the writers. Love, hate, ambition, betrayal, despair, and joy fill the glittering halls and manicured landscapes of this impeccably recreated historical period. Much like Irna Phillips and other great daytime scribes, Lord Fellowes knows that viewers want to experience the lives of his characters, not just watch them. Every line is carefully chosen to make people think about what is being said and why. The audience of faithful Fellowes followers anticipates the witty rejoinders that are the trademark of his productions. As the wealthy matron Agnes, the wonderfully talented Christine Baranski is the perfect successor to Dame Maggie Smith’s acerbically endearing dowager countess of Downton Abbey. There is a definable and highly quotable Fellowes style at work, savored in popular YouTube compilations of Agnes’s most witty observations.
Soap fans are doubly rewarded by memories of Baranski’s performances on All My Children as Jewel alongside her real-life husband Matthew Cowles as the comic Billy Clyde Tuggle.
Baranski inhabits the role so completely that we forget Agnes Van Rhijn is a fictional character. The same goes for many in this dynamite cast: Carrie Coon (Bertha), Morgan Spector (George), Denée Benton (Peggy), Audra MacDonald (Dorothy), Cynthia Nixon (Ada), Nathan Lane (Ward), and so many others in this the great assemblage of Broadway and film professionals. The set is a very happy one. I highly recommend following the actors on Instagram. The camaraderie is evident in their praise of one another and in their cute selfies and videos.
The producers and directors have wisely made the majestic homes of this ritzy on-screen population into characters themselves, grandly proud of their wealth and status. The use of real mansions in Newport, Rhode Island and New York not only adds authenticity, but brings everything to life.
Did you ever expect that people would want to see what characters from the 1880s would wear next? To see the trends? The costume designers deserve high praise for their historical recreations. Each outfit matches the character’s individual personality.
The dreamy score by Harry and Rupert Gregson-Williams adds greatly to every episode, much as the musical cues that The Young and the Restless fans anticipate heightening the scenes of their favorite denizens.
Veteran soap scribes Harding Lemay, Michael Malone, Henry Slesar, and the Dobsons used quirky supporting characters to enhance the main players in their soaps. The Gilded Age has succeeded in making its supporting cast very endearing, too. Donna Murphy and Ashlie Atkinson are standouts as THE Mrs. Astor and Mrs. Fish. Kelli O’Hara’s elegant Aurora Fane is always in the thick of things, seizing every opportunity to manage her alliances, often finding herself being shunned for circumstances beyond her control. The rules of society play a big part in how everyone behaves. Or in some cases, do not behave.
Does the show get history right, every time? Pretty much! Of course, people will dissect whether there is an occasional faux pas. But it’s clear the production staff works tirelessly to get it right. Showing how African American characters lived lives of well-heeled prominence in Newport and Brooklyn adds to everyone’s knowledge. Having said that, the program doesn’t shy away from racism, even something as simple as Peggy being refused a ride by a cab driver. Or the barely veiled hostility of the bigoted Miss Armstrong. Yet, Peggy is strong, practical, and refuses to give into defeat. She has chemistry with her various suitors. Viewers are torn as to who she should be with.
Why is SeasonThree so popular? In the first two seasons, we watched the main players position themselves for the dramatic payoffs we are seeing today. Harry Richardson’s Larry Russell and Louisa Jacobson’s Marian Brook have danced around each other for the last few years, despite both having failed romances. The scene in which he proposed under the trees was wildly romantic. However, will they make it to the altar? It remains to be seen. Their own natures might keep them apart, similar to Matthew and Mary in Downton Abbey.
Love is growing between the Duke of Buckingham and his new Duchess, Gladys Russell. Taissa Farmiga, who plays every emotion as Gladys, went from debutante to reluctant bride as her ambitious mother essentially sold her off to the proverbial highest bidder in society. Yet, Farmiga and Ben Lamb have great chemistry. Perhaps it will be a happy union after all. Or as much happiness as soap opera characters are allowed. History has shown that this type of union does not always end well, since bits and pieces of Consuelo Vanderbilt’s life resemble Gladys’. The writers cleverly pay homage to real life people.
George and Bertha Russell took New York society by storm with their new money and ambitions. Has Gladys overplayed her hand to be the Queen of New York and lost her family? George has shown he is a clever and cool businessman, but has he made too many enemies? Oscar Van Rhijn was a dark character in the beginning due to his obsession with status and money, but his love for John and his financial fall from grace have humanized him. Blake Ritson’s sad eyes give us a window into Oscar’s true feelings.
Cynthia Nixon’s sweet Aunt Ada is a refuge from every storm. Now a wealthy widow, she’s in a position to live her own life after decades as a spinster. Irna Phillips would be proud of her evolution.
The downstairs staffers don’t have the same prominence they have in Fellowes’ other productions, but each moves the story along. Jack the clock maker, however, has gained a following of his own as the unassuming footman with a talent for inventions. Now that he’s made a fortune, what will he do next?
As this season of The Gilded Age draws to a close, the do or die cliffhangers are coming fast and furious. I imagine the season finale will leave everyone on the edge of their seats. Episode Seven ended with the requisite cliffhanger at its best, reminiscent of “Who shot J.R.?” This time it’s “Who shot George?” To find out, or maybe not yet, who knows, tune in to the final episode of Season Three Sunday, Aug. 10 HBO.
And this just in: It’s not a surprise that HBO has renewed The Gilded Age for another season.
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